I was doing my usual York bird count route the other day when I chanced upon a White-tailed Deer working its way through a 10-acre belly-high field of winter wheat. it’s been a good field for Vesper Sparrows this year. But today the wheat was gone, taken right down to the bottom few centimeters. No Vesper Sparrows today, just a few American Crows picking up the crumbs left by the harvesting. It must be what a war feels like: in a moment your home and community is completely obliterated.
Yesterday morning this White-tailed Deer was wading through a sea of wheat. -DOL
Today the wheat is gone and the straw as well. Hopefully the Vesper Sparrows that were inhabiting the field fledged young successfully. -DOL
Recently I visited the Farm to take a look at the amount of work that will be required to get the banding operation up and going in September. If you want to help it would be greatly appreciated but you’ll need a weed whacker or a scythe and a strong back. Much to my surprise there was a Great Egret perched in the dense vegetation just behind the pond.
At first glance you might think this is a scene from the Everglades but…no….this Great Egret has the lush growth of the Farm pond as a backdrop. -DOL
Rick